GEN. H. Hugh Shelton (USA Ret.)

General Shelton spent 38 years in service through a variety of command and staff positions in the continental United States, Hawaii, and Vietnam. He served two combat tours in Vietnam, the first with the 5th Special Forces Group and the second with the 173rd Airborne Brigade. Also, he commanded the 3rd Battalion, 60th Infantry in the 9th Infantry Division at Fort Lewis, Washington; served as the 9th Infantry Division’s Chief of Staff for operations; commanded the 1st Brigade of the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina; and was the Chief of Staff of the 10th Mountain Division at Fort Drum, New York. Selected for promotion to Brigadier General in 1988, General Shelton served two years in the Operations Directorate of the Joint Staff. In 1989, he began a two-year assignment as the Assistant Division

Commander for Operations of the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, where he participated in the liberation of Kuwait during Operation DESERTSHIELD/STORM.

After the Gulf War, he was promoted to major general and assumed command of the 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, North Carolina. In 1993, he was promoted to Lieutenant General and assumed command of the XVIII Airborne Corps. In 1994, during his tenure as Corps commander, General Shelton led the United States Joint Task Force that restored democracy in Haiti. In March 1996, he was promoted to General and became Commander in Chief of the U.S. Special Operations Command.

General Shelton became the 14th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on October 1, 1997, and served two two-year terms, retiring on September 30, 2001. In this capacity he was the principle military advisor to Presidents Clinton and Bush as well as the Secretaries of Defense and the National Security Council. General Shelton holds a Bachelor’s degree in from North Carolina State University, a Master’s degree from Auburn University, and has attended Harvard University, the Air Command and Staff College, and the National War College.

Among his many military awards, General Shelton has received four Defense Distinguished Service Medals, two Army Distinguished Service Medals, the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star Medal for Valor, and the Purple Heart. He has been decorated by 16 foreign governments, and in 2001, General Shelton was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II. For his exemplary service to his country, the 107th Congress bestowed the Congressional Gold Medal on General Shelton on September 19, 2002.

After retiring from the Armed Forces, General Shelton served as President, International Operations, of M.I.C. Industries from 2001-2005. He has served as a director on a number of public company boards to include Anheuser Busch Companies (2001-2008), Anteon International (2001-2007), and Professional Products of America (2005-2009). He is currently Chairman of the Board of Red Hat, Inc. and serves as a director of L-3 Communications. In addition he serves as a director for the following private companies: CoVant, A-T Solutions, The O’Gara Group, Professional Products Enterprises, and HighMark. He previously served as a director of Robbins-Gioia, BioSignia, and Professional Products Services (P2S).